teresa4yoga

Sit in a comfortable position, ideally with the back straight but not rigid, in a chair or meditation stool or cushion.

Allow the body to begin to relax and let go of tension.

Come into an awareness of the present moment, feel the clothes on your skin, your body sitting on the chair. Send a connection down into the earth beneath you to ground your energy.

Adopt your chosen hand position or mudra if you choose to use one

(first finger and thumb lightly touching, with fingers relaxed, or palms cupped one in the other left hand underneath with thumbs lightly touching, or simply resting in the lap are commonly used )

Close your eyes and take your attention to your breath, notice the breath as it comes into your body and as it leaves, slowly deepen the breath until it is comfortable to breathe from your belly,

allowing the in breath to naturally fill your abdomen and then gently pull the belly back toward the spine as you exhale. Breathe in a rhythm that is natural for your body.

Keep your awareness on the breath* and allow it to gently take you into a quiet place inside. A place of stillness. As thoughts and feelings enter the mind just gently let them pass, acknowledge them but letting them go as if you were standing on a riverbank watching them pass by with the current. The aim of meditation is not to free the mind of thoughts and feelings but to learn to detach or step back from them. Each time you realise your mind has wandered, gently come back to your breath without self judgement or self criticism, (this is important). Some thoughts are enticing and its like you have jumped into the river to travel downstream with these thoughts. Come back to an awareness of the silent observer, the watcher of the thoughts and simply hold your focus in the stillness. This is coming back to the riverbank.

Once you are able to hold this place of stillness easily. This can take much practice and should never be rushed. Be patient but persevere, meditation is a discipline that changes your mind. You may wish to allow yourself to naturally go deeper and deeper into the silent awareness through an extended period of concentration until you find that naturally your mind stills and you rest in the stillness, without a need to focus on the breath, but just an awareness of your self. From this place of deep inner awareness you may find that images, ideas or feelings arise that have a different quality to your usual thoughts and feelings, these are whole, complete and intuitive and arise from your Higher Self or your Soul. They are not something you work out or like your usual thoughts.

Just allow these to occur as they do. You may experience a sense of unity or light or a feeling of expanded consciousness. Just allow and don’t try to look for these experiences and don’t be concerned if they do or do not occur. You can ask your inner self for guidance on a particular problem in your life, often your intuition will guide you at this point.

Listen and be open with a feeling of graceful surrender. **

Let the meditation to be exactly as it is meant to be on this day at this time.When you feel it is time to come back to your everyday consciousness, gently wake the body by moving, take a deep breath and open your eyes, maintaining the poise, grace and peace of your meditation and taking this wonderful clarity into the rest of your day.

Give Thanks and let your heart fill with Gratitude.

Namaste

* Some people prefer to use a sanskript mantra or the "om" or a particular spiritual phrase or gazing into the light of a candle and its reflective image in the mind instead of focusing on the breath.

**You may wish to introduce a visualisation at this point, using your mind to imagine with clarity and detail that which you wish to manifest in your life. Or you may wish to visualise yourself for example as an eagle soaring high or a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, or a lotus bud slowly opening in the heart to reveal six perfectly formed cerise pink petals emanating love all of these are images of the heart opening and the soul unfolding.

How to Meditate

Ten minute Guided Meditation

for Inner Peace

Suitable for beginners

Come back to an awareness of the silent observer, the watcher of the thoughts....

Follow your breath it will always take you to a place of stillness within...